Tesla Outpaces Chinese Rivals Li Auto and Nio with 17% Increase in EV Deliveries, Boosted by Government Subsidies

Tesla's production of electric vehicles (EVs) from its Chinese factory saw a 17% increase, even as competitors Li Auto and Nio faced declining sales. The US automobile manufacturer has been able to defy the overall downward trend in the first half of the year, largely due to an increased government subsidy stimulating sales.

The American auto manufacturer's Gigafactory 3 in Shanghai supplied 86,697 Model 3 and Model Y cars to customers both locally and internationally in August. This represents a 17% increase from July and a 3% rise compared to the same month last year, as reported by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

Even with the recovery, the plant's shipments for the first eight months of 2024 were 6% less than the 624,983 vehicles it delivered during the equivalent timeframe the previous year.

"Tesla and domestic competitors have profited from China's government providing financial incentives to promote the buying of electric vehicles as replacements," Tian Maowei, a sales executive at Shanghai's Yiyou Auto Service stated. "Seeing as a rising number of young motorists favor electric over gas-powered cars, Tesla's revenue in China is expected to stay consistent in the near future."

Towards the end of July, Beijing increased the subsidies for electric vehicle purchasers by twofold, a mere three months following their introduction of incentives aimed at speeding up the transformation of the local car industry.